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Bryan Parras's blog

The Keystone XL pipeline begins in Alberta, Canada and ends in my backyard. Here in Houston’s East End, we’re well acquainted with the risks of living so close to the oil refineries whose toxic emissions poison us every day. Like so many other kids in this neighborhood, I grew up with constant headaches, asthma and skin rashes. Cardiovascular diseases and cancer are not uncommon. Now, the tar sands are here in my home.

Today, two community advocates and regional leaders from the Gulf Coast, Bryan Parras and Derrick Evans, brought an urgent message to BP's board and shareholders, at the corporation's annual meeting. Here are Parras's remarks as prepared for delivery. Parras is a leader of Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services, (t.e.j.a.s.), Gulf Coast Fund Advisor, and

(Houston, TX) Today, public health groups blasted ExxonMobil Chemical Company for blocking new restrictions on toxic chemicals that damage children’s health and pollute local communities. Outside its corporate headquarters, protesters unveiled a giant twenty-foot rubber ducky, a favorite bath toy often made with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) which contains toxic chemicals known as phthalates (pronounced ‘THA-lates’), which are produced by ExxonMobil at its Baton Rouge, LA factory.

Lax regulations on chemicals put everyone at risk.A fast-moving, "out of control" fire erupted at the Magnablend Chemical Company in Waxahachie, Texas, this afternoon. The fire has forced the evacuation of at least one elementary school in this Dallas suburb, and the nearby Navarro College, according to news reports. Residents have been advised to stay indoors to avoid dangerous gasses.

Community groups from all over Texas are gathering to unite in opposition over the planned Keystone XL pipeline Sunday, September 18, 2011. The Canadian project reportedly cost more to construct than the value of the expensive tar sands oil it will carry from Alberta, Canada to Port Arthur and Houston, Texas.

The Manchester neighborhood in Houston is completely surrounded by Valero, Texas Recycling, a car crushing facility, the Port of Houston, Highway 610, a rail yard and a waste water treatment plant. These are two aerial photos of the Manchester community that my dad, Juan Parras, took a few years ago. The area in green is of course Manchester. The third image is a shot of the Houston Ship Channel.